Plaid Cymru, the Party Of Wales, news, comment, opinion and observations from the South East corner of the old historic county of Gwent...

Saturday, 9 November 2013

IN REMEMBRANCE

In Flanders fields...

Tomorrow will
be Remembrance Sunday (the 10th November), when people pause briefly
to publically remember the veterans and survivors of historic and more recent conflicts
and those who never came back. My family like far too many others in Wales (and
elsewhere) had relatives who served and survived and also relatives who lost
their lives in the First and Second World Wars and other conflicts. One of my maternal
grandmother’s lost two brothers in the First World War and its aftermath, her
elder brother was a regular soldier, who wrote home and told them not to allow
his younger brother to join up and to come out to France. It was too late the
younger brother had joined up was killed in action in 1918 and buried near
Amiens. I have absolutely
no problem remembering those who lost their lives and the courage, comradeship
and their endurance of those who served in the First World War and other
conflicts (and not necessarily in the armed forces); but I have little time for rose
tinted nostalgic flag waving foot tapping pap. As has
been said elsewhere, soldiers don’t die for the politicians, for patriotism or
even us but for their friends and comrades with whom they serve. Far too many
lie in corners of foreign fields, are names on a war memorial, faded
photographs, faded memories or literally have no grave at all. US President Abraham
Lincoln rightly noted at Gettysburg the fallen have given their last full
measure of devotion. It may be more true today that the world will little note the current crop of
political leader’s lyrical offerings on conflict, nor long remember them. What
we should never forget what the former soldiers and veterans did and what they
went through and we should not just cherish their memory but ensure that after
their military service they are fully honoured as is the military covenant.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Jonathan T Clark

About Me

A former journalist, and a former IT Professional, I am interested in social justice, the growing problem of a lack of affordable housing, energy independence, land tenure, public access, law and order, equal pay, integrated public transport, our economy, the consequences of the former war on terror and enduring threats to civil liberties. I have a passing interest in the consequences of Peak Everything. Amongst my other interests are Archaeology, history, politics not to mention Newport County and the Gwent Dragons. I have been actively involved in pretty much every Plaid campaign in the South East one way or another since 1998 Any blog postings contain only my personal views and are published in an entirely personal capacity.